Microplastics – News and Features

For the colorful, graceful sea fans swaying among the coral reefs in the waters around Puerto Rico, the metal copper is an emerging threat in an era of warming oceans.

Researchers have shown that the volume of water used in a wash cycle is the key factor in the release of plastic microfibres from clothes.

Many people are trying to reduce their plastic use, but some tea manufacturers are moving in the opposite direction: replacing traditional paper teabags with plastic ones which have been shown to shed particles into your brew.

Using the Great Lakes as a laboratory, sedimentary petrologists are studying the behavior of microplastics as a geologic phenomenon.

Since the end of World War II, there's been an explosion in plastic production which is being mirrored in our sedimentary records.

Tiny pieces of plastic break down further during the water treatment processes, reducing the performance of treatment plants and impacting water quality.

Over the past several years, microplastic particles have repeatedly been detected in seawater, drinking water, and even in animals. But these minute particles are also transported by the atmosphere and subsequently washed out of the air, especially by snow – and even in such remote regions as the Arctic and the Alps.

In the western world, when we turn on our taps, we take it for granted that the drinking water that comes out is safe. But a lot of work goes on behind the scenes to ensure this is the case. We spoke to Fiona Regan, Professor of Chemistry at Dublin City University and Director of the DCU Water Institute, about the challenges facing our water resources.

Microplastic are common from the surface to the seafloor and may be entering marine food webs, both at the surface and in the deep. Research suggests that most of this microplastic is coming from consumer products.

Researchers estimate that the average American consumes more than 70,000 particles of microplastics per year, though the health effects of that consumption are unclear.